Energy Suspension Steering Rack Bushings for 88-91 Civic /CRX

Energy Suspension Steering Rack Bushings for 88-91 Civic and CRX

If your EF Civic or CRX has gone vague or loose in the steering, the rack mount bushings are a likely culprit. These are the bushings that hold your steering rack to the chassis, and after 30-plus years the factory rubber has compressed and gone soft, which lets the whole rack shift around when you turn the wheel. That shift is wasted motion, you turn, the rack moves before the wheels do, and the steering feels disconnected. This Energy Suspension set replaces that worn rubber with polyurethane that locks the rack down, so your steering inputs go straight to the wheels and the car feels sharp and direct again.

On a light, quick-steering EF chassis, tightening up the rack mounts is one of the most noticeable steering upgrades you can make for the money. The rack stops flexing in its mounts, turn-in gets crisper, and the car tracks better on center. Polyurethane also shrugs off the oil, road salt, and grime that rot rubber, so unlike the factory bushings these are not going to soften back up on you in a few years.

What these fit

These mount the steering rack on the 88-91 Civic and CRX. Despite the older "power steering" label some places still carry, this set fits both the power steering and manual steering racks on these cars, the rack mount is the same, so do not let the name steer you off if you have a manual rack. This is also one of the components in Energy's 88-91 Civic/CRX master bushing kit, so if you are refreshing the whole car, the master kit covers this position along with everything else.

Specs

Color options

Red and black are the same polyurethane at the same hardness. The black is graphite-impregnated so it is slightly more self-lubricating, the red is just the color. There is no performance difference, so pick whichever you want.

Fitment

Fits the power steering and manual racks on the 88-91 Civic and CRX. If you have done a swap that changed your rack or subframe, confirm your rack mount is the factory EF style before ordering.

What to know before you buy

First, the honest tradeoff. Polyurethane is firmer than the factory rubber, so you may notice a little more steering feedback and road feel through the wheel. On a car where you want sharp, connected steering, that is exactly what you are after. It is a minor change here since these are small mount bushings, not a major chassis bushing, but it is worth knowing the steering will feel more direct, not softer.

Second, grease them well on install. A dry poly bushing is what squeaks later, so coat the contact surfaces with polyurethane-safe grease when you put the rack back on. It is a straightforward job with hand tools once you have access to the rack mounts.

Third, do the related steering and suspension wear items while you are in there. If you have the rack mounts apart, it is a good time to look at your tie rod ends and the rest of the front-end bushings, since a fresh rack mount paired with worn everything-else only gets you partway to tight steering. A lot of people doing an EF steering refresh knock these out alongside the control arm and sway bar bushings.